Amore Nascosto
by aebteach
Summary: She has a secret, if he tells anyone she'll deny it, can he ignore what is happening at her request, even when he knows she is in pain. I based this off a Nick Carter fanfic I wrote. Canon Pairs, Human
1. Chapter 1

**February 1985**

"You little brat, get your ass up to your room and don't come out."

The face of the 5 year old girl in front of him crumbled as she raced up the stairs, tripping as she went.

His cruel laughter followed her as she went.

She let a small cry of anguish as she flung herself upon her bed and clutched her pillow tightly to her chest.

Phil had been so nice to her when mommy brought him home. Then after the wedding he started acting differently. He yelled at her and made fun of her clumsiness.

Her small stomach growled angrily, protesting that is was past dinner time. She glanced at the clock and heaved a small sigh. Her mother was not due home for quite some time and she knew Phil would not allow her to come out to eat.

Curling up into a ball, she softly cried herself into a fitful sleep

**June 1993**

"Where is she," the young man asked his mother as he paced in front of the window.

His mother, Esme, looked up from the table where she was rummaging through her purse.

I'm sure she will be here, her mother called and said Phil would bring her by."

The 13 year old boy crinkled his nose, "I don't like Phil. He is mean to her."

His mother looked up sharply, "have you ever seen Phil be mean to her?"

"Well, no. But I've heard him yelling when I was on the phone with her. She said it was at the TV, but I don't believe her."

Just then his father came in, "alright everyone's bags are in the car, time to go."

"But, she isn't here yet, I can't leave without saying goodbye."

"Why don't you call her?" his mother suggested.

He nodded and ran into his father's office to use the phone.

Across town.

"Please Phil, he is leaving for camp today. Mom said I could go."

"I don't care what _Mom_ said, I am watching the game."

"Can I call Esme to come get me?"

He reached over and yanked the cord of the phone out of the wall in response.

"Please Phil," she begged.

Before she could react he was out of chair and had her by the collar of her shirt.

"Ask me again," he growled menacingly.

She shook her head.

He laughed cruelly and shoved her away, "get out of my sight."

She ran upstairs as the tears welled up. Throwing herself down on her bed she began to cry. As she lay there an idea came to her and she jumped off her bed and grabbed her backpack. Throwing in her few treasured possessions along with some clothes and money; she slipped it on her back and quietly opened her bedroom window. She was halfway out when her door flew open and she saw Phil standing in her doorway. The next time she opened her eyes, she was laying in a hospital bed, her arm in a cast and he was long gone.

**June 1995**

"What do you mean you are moving?"

"My Dad got a job at a hospital in Seattle; he is leaving in a week. Mom, Emmett, Alice and I are staying long enough to sell the house. They already found a house up there."

"We were supposed to go to high school together, what will I do without you?"

"You'll be okay and Seattle is less than 3 hours away."

"Who is going to drive me? Phil?" she snorted.

"I get my license next year; I can drive here to see you."

"That is at least a year away, you'll have made new friends and forgot about me by then," she sniffled.

"I could never forget about you, we're best friends."

She looked down dejectedly and nodded.

"Please don't be sad, we will always be friends," he begged.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, "It's your birthday, we should be happy."

"I got you a present?" he told her.

"You got me a present? It's your birthday."

He shrugged and handed her a small jewelry box. She opened it slowly. Inside was a white-gold charm bracelet.

"It's beautiful," she whispered.

"It's to remember me by. There's a music note on there, a Virgo charm for you, Gemini for me, and a bell."

Her eyes teared up as she threw her arms around his neck and sobbed. He patted her back gently, trying to soothe her. He looked up to see his older brother wiggling his eyebrows suggestively from across the room and blushed a deep red.

**A/N I hate short chapters too, but I am setting up the background, they will get longer I swear.**


	2. Chapter 2

**September 1996**

The shrill ringing of the phone woke her from her restless slumber. Groggily she reached for it.

"Hello?"

"Hey you, happy 16th birthday," replied the familiar voice.

"Hi, thank you," she said, smiling.

She immediately regretted the action as pain shot through her jaw.

"Were you sleeping?"

"Yah, just taking a nap," she replied, rubbing her jaw gently.

"I have a surprise for you," he replied, not able to hide the exuberance in his voice.

Before she could reply, the doorbell rang.

"Can you hold on? Someone is at the door."

"Sure, but hurry back, I want to tell you about your surprise."

She set the phone down and hurried to the front door. Unlocking the deadbolt, she slid the door open slowly. Immediately she screamed as she was picked up and spun around.

"Edward," she cried, "What are you doing here?"

"It's your 16th birthday; did you think I would not come see you? Besides it gives me a chance to drive my new car," he replied gesturing to the vehicle parked by the curb.

She nervously peeked her head out the door and looked up and down the street.

"You really shouldn't have come without calling first," she murmured as she glanced around.

"Aren't you glad to see me?" he asked, looking slightly dejected.

"Yes, of course I am, it's just not a good time; I'm not supposed to let anyone in when I'm home alone."

"Bella, what happened to your face," he questioned, leaning closer to examine the purplish bruises forming under her eye and on her jaw.

She looked away quickly, "I fell, you know me."

"Why are you lying to me?"

"Edward I am so glad you came by, but if Phil comes home and finds you here, he is going to get very angry."

"Phil gets angry a lot doesn't he?"

"No, it's just when I provoke him, it's my own fault," she replied quickly.

"Did Phil give you these bruises?"

"No, I told you, I fell," she replied, tears pooling at the corner of her eyes.

Edward grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. She drew back in fright when his hand touched her face and threw her arms up to protect herself.

'Bella?" he questioned her quietly.

She raised her head and realized what she was doing. Looking at Edward and seeing the worried expression on his face, she finally broke down and fell into his arms sobbing helplessly against his chest.

"Oh Bella," he whispered as she poured out her heart to him.

He sat and listened to her recant how it had started and why she had never shown up to tell him goodbye when he left for camp when they were 13. She told him how her mother pretended it didn't happen, telling Bella that she needed to stop provoking Phil. Isabella knew that Phil hit her mother too and if she tried to defend Bella he would beat her.

Bella looked down at her watch and realized Phil would be home at any minute.

"Edward, please you have to leave before he comes home," she pleaded.

"Bella please come with me, you can tell my mom and she'll call the police."

"NO," she screamed, "I'm not telling anyone and you can't either."

"But…Bella you need help," he protested.

"NO Edward, you can't tell anyone, If you do I'll deny it happened and I will never speak to you again, you understand me Edward Cullen, you can't tell anyone!!!"

"Bella."

"Swear to me you won't tell anyone Edward, swear it!"

"But…"

"SWEAR IT, please" she pleaded desperately.

Reluctantly he nodded his head and hugged her. She stood in the doorway and waved to him as he climbed into his.

Bella had just shut the door when she heard her mother and Phil pull into the driveway. She was still in the hallway when he threw open the door and set his sights on her.

"We've been calling for a half hour, why has the phone been off the hook."

Bella realized she had never hung up the phone from earlier and took a deep breath, "I forgot to hang it up."

Edward had forgotten to give Bella her present that he had brought her and was turning his car around when he saw the Phil coming down the street. He pulled up in front of the house across the street and ducked down in his seat and rolled down the window. He watched Phil storm into the house and heard him yelling at Bella. The next sound he heard was the gut wrenching sound of Phil's hand connecting with Bella's face and then Bella's mother shut the front door and all was quiet.


	3. Chapter 3

**May 1999**

Edward returned to Seattle that day and he kept in contact with Bella for the next two and a half years over the phone and through letters almost daily. He tried several times to convince her to tell someone about the abuse, but she always refused. She would become agitated and threaten to hang up if he continued discussing it. He tried to visit her, but his advanced placement courses and after-school job kept her very busy. It wasn't until the night of her senior prom that he was able to see her again face to face.

It took some serious begging on his part to convince his parents to let him get a hotel and stay in Portland overnight by himself. Finally they consented, but with warnings for him to make good decisions. He had rolled his eyes at their comments.

He arrived at her house in a limousine and a black tux at precisely 6 P.M so that he could take her to dinner before the dance. In one hand he held a dozen white roses and in his other her corsage. He rang the doorbell but got no answer. After knocking for several minutes he tried the knob and found the door to be unlocked. Stepping inside he called Bella's name but got no response. He moved down the hall towards Bella's room and opened the door slowly. The room was dark and he reached over to flip on the light switch. The room was immediately bathed in light and Edward dropped the flowers he was holding on the floor.

In the corner, with her knees pulled up to her chest and her head down was Bella in her prom dress.

"Bella," he whispered as he fell to his knees next to her.

"I can't go to the prom Edward," she whispered.

"Why not Bella?"

She raised her head and he gasped. Her hair framed her face in ringlets and he could tell that she had spent a long time on her makeup. But not matter how hard she tried; there was no way to hide the two distinct bruises under her eyes and her very swollen lip. He also noticed that her dress was torn in at least 3 different places.

"Oh Bella," he whispered holding her tight against him.

"I didn't think the music was that loud," she sobbed. "I turned it down when he asked but it wasn't far enough. It's my own stupid fault. Now I've ruined your night and my own prom."

"No, Bella it is never your fault, he does not have the right to hit you."

"I provoke him Edward, I try not to but I always do. I guess I'm as stupid as he says. I guess I do deserve it."

His eyes flashed with anger. He looked down at his hands and saw them shaking with rage. He wished he could kill the son of a bitch and take Bella far away from here.

He shook his head forcing himself to concentrate on the present, "No, Bella you don't deserve it. You're a straight A student, you're not stupid. Phil is a bully and a coward. Come on, we are leaving."

"Where are we going," she asked as he hauled her to her feet, "I can't go to prom like this."

"I'm taking you somewhere else, somewhere that isn't here," he told her as he pulled her out of her room and out the front door, barely giving her time to grab her purse, coat, keys and lock the front door.

She shrieked as he scooped her up into his arms and carried her out to the awaiting limo. After safely tucking her inside, he went up front and gave the driver new directions.

He climbed into the back and smiled at Bella. She was sitting there staring at him expectantly. Even though her lip was swollen and her cheeks were bruised, he had never seen anyone more beautiful. The sun was shining though the window behind her, forming a halo around her coffee colored hair.

"I forgot to tell you how beautiful you look tonight Bella," he whispered gingerly brushing the back of his hand across her cheek.

She blushed and ducked her head shyly.

"Thank you,'' she whispered.

"Don't thank me, I'm only telling the truth," he replied, tucking a brown ringlet behind her ear.

"Not just for that Edward, for being my best friend and for being there when I need you. It means so much to me to have you as my friend. I don't have to worry about you judging me, you always now the right things to say to make me feel better. Phil told me you were going to forget about me now that you moved."

"Bella, I would never give up on you, no matter how far away I move. I'm still the same guy that put sand in your shoes when we were little. I'm the same guy who didn't invite you to his 11th birthday because he's friend made fun of him. No one, not even Alice or Emmett understand me like you do.:

She blushed again and laid her head on his shoulder and sighed deeply. He wrapped his arms around her protectively. It was the first time since that horrible day when she was five years old that she truly felt safe and was not scared of Phil.

When they arrived at their destination, Bella squealed happily and practically knocked Edward over in her excitement to get out of the limo. He laughed hysterically as she raced down across the grass to the riverfront, her dress billowing at her legs. He smiled happily as he watched her gaze out over the water, the orange glow of the setting sun coloring the sky around them

They spent the entire evening at the water font park, talking and catching up. They listened to local musicians play their instruments and watched the boats move up and down the river. When he half carried, half guided her sleepy form back to the limo it was almost midnight and he knew that he had to get her home before her curfew or Phil would come unglued. He considered briefly keeping her out so that Phil would get angry and come after him. He thought better of it though, realizing that he would probably wait until he was gone and then take it out on Bella.

They arrived at her house 15 minutes before curfew and he walked her to the door.

"I had a wonderful time tonight Edward," she whispered.

"Me too Bella," he replied back with a warm smile.

They stood there silently for a moment and then Bella spoke, "I better go inside before Phil comes out her and accuses me of making out with you. I don't understand why he would think that, it's not like I ever have. He knows that."

"Oh come on Bella, none of your boyfriends have even tried to make out with you? I don't believe it," he teased.

"I've never had a boyfriend or been kissed, you know that Edward," she replied softly. "Hell this is the closest I've ever come to an actual date."

"Bella you've never been kissed, I mean a real kiss?"

She looked away in embarrassment, "I'm not allowed to date. Even if I was, it's not like guys are lining up to ask me out."

Edward grabbed her chin gently and forced her to look at him. Bella blushed a deep red as he smiled at her. He let go of her chin and brushed a loose piece of hair off her forehead.

"As your best friend I can't allow you to go kissless anymore,'' he told her softly.

"What do you…" she was cut off by his lips pressing softly to hers.

She let out a little sigh when he pulled away, her eyes opened slowly and she looked at him.

"Good night my Bella, sweet dreams," he whispered kissing her cheek softly before walking back to the limo.

Bella slipped quietly into the house and upstairs to her room. She opened her door and spotted the roses still on the floor next to her bed. Picking them up, she inhaled their sweet scent and sighed. Walking towards the window, she noticed the charm bracelet Edward had given her when they were fifteen sitting on her dresser. Picking it up, she slipped it onto her wrist and moved to the window. She parted her curtains and saw Edward still standing next to the limo staring up at her. He smiled when saw her appear in the window. She reached her hand up to gently touch her lips where Edward had kissed her. Blowing her a kiss and waving one final time, Edward slid into the limo and closed the door.

Bella watched it pull away and slip away into the darkness. She sighed happily and changed into her pajamas.

There was a soft knock on her door as she was climbing into bed and her mom poked her head in the room.

"Did you have fun Bella?" she whispered.

"Yes I did Momma," she whispered back.

"That's good baby, remember we need to be ready to go to Phil's company picnic by 11, please be ready on time."

"I will momma," she replied.

Her mother nodded and shut the door softly.

Bella smiled and drifted off into a peaceful sleep, dreaming about Edward and her special night.


End file.
